


Control

by ironsidee



Category: Bridgerton (TV), Bridgerton Series - Julia Quinn
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Insecure Kate
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-22 12:20:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 907
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30038610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ironsidee/pseuds/ironsidee
Summary: Kate’s insecurity is touched upon briefly in TVWLM. I wanted to explore it a bit more. Set post wedding but pre-carriage incident.
Relationships: Anthony Bridgerton/Kate Sharma, Anthony Bridgerton/Kate Sheffield
Comments: 7
Kudos: 91





	Control

Kate is quite sure she is in love with her husband. His sharp tongue lights a fire within her. He stokes it with his smooth charm and teasing words. His skilled arms and strong body only add fuel to the fire. His kind heart, the one that not many see, work to fan the flames. 

But he doesn’t feel the same toward her. Despite what Lady Whistledown says, theirs is not a love match. And it never will be. Anthony made that clear before their marriage.

As much as she doesn’t want to, she remembers that night in Anthony’s study as she hid under his desk while he entertained that opera singer. She recalls the anger she felt when she heard Anthony acknowledge that his marriage wouldn’t involve love. When he said he would be free to have mistresses. She remembers the heat rushing in her body, and her opposition to have Edwina deal with that pain. Now she is in the place once meant for Edwina, except the heat and anger are replaced with cold and numbness.

Kate knows she is not the beauty that is Edwina. She loves her sister but it is difficult to fill her place. Anthony, who wanted to marry the season’s Incomparable, is now stuck with her. It is hard enough for Kate to replace her sister, but harder to compete with all the nameless and faceless women who come before and after her.

Anthony spends his days out, and returns to her at night. She knows he is out tending to family business, but she can’t help but think he spares some time to visit and please a mistress. Besides, she heard him admit that he would have one in his loveless marriage. The feeling of inadequacy makes her ache. She tries to smother her feelings, but instead they multiply. By the time he returns at nightfall, her feelings completely overtake her.

She is in bed wearing a pink robe that covers her peach nightgown. She lays on her side facing away from the door as Anthony enters. She hears the shuffling of material and assumes he is disrobing while he discusses his day. He never speaks of a mistress and she never scents perfume on him but, she thinks with a scoff, he could easily wash it off.

Anthony speaks of an investment and asks Kate for her opinion on it. She doesn’t respond and keeps her back towards him. “Kate?” The concern in his voice is evident. In that moment, she wants him to ache for her as she does for him. She wants to be his only thought. She wants him drowning in her. Only her.

When he kneels on the bed and reaches for her shoulder, she shifts quickly and the motion surprises him. She rolls them until he lays flat on the bed, and she straddles his waist. He is shirtless, but still wearing his trousers. Warmth blossoms in her belly. Just a single look and she is already on fire for him.

He settles onto the bed and grasps her thighs, slowly caressing the side of her legs. The dark look in his eyes makes her feel powerful, and she briefly wonders if he has the same look for his other women. Her chest feels hollow.

She forces herself to put the thought away. Tonight, she wants to be in control. She shrugs off her robe, leaving her in the silk nightgown. She removes the belt from her discarded robe. Taking his hands in her own, she slams it above his head, and pins them together with one hand. The intensity in his eyes grows. She takes her belt and uses it to tie his wrists to the bed post as tight as she can. Anthony immediately hardens beneath her. _Good_ , she thinks. Let him want her as much as she wants him, even if only for a night.

Her hair curtains his head as she slowly brushes her lips across his face. Forehead, temples, eyes, nose, cheeks. She brushes against his lips softly and he groans when she pulls away before he can respond. She trails her lips down his chest before placing a lingering kiss on the heart that has so captured hers. He tugs on the restraint when her teeth graze his chest.

Kate loves the flush of his skin and the noises she pulls from him. She allows herself to believe that only she can make his heart stutter under her lips. Her fingers make quick work of his trousers and he is bare before her. “Off, Kate,” Anthony says in a low voice. “I want that gown off you.”

She ignores him, and instead lines herself up and sinks down on him. She moves against him slowly, savouring the feel of him. “Kate,” he hisses slowly while pulling against her belt. She never knew it would actually hold. He picks up the pace under her. She tilts her head back, matching his frequency, before removing her nightgown.

“Perfect,” He groans. “So bloody _perfect_.”

His voice is so reverent, she releases a moan. She closes her eyes and speeds up. She loves him, and feels like each movement is a testament to it. Each sigh a piece of evidence. “Kate. Kate. Kate.” He grunts, each time a little louder, a little wilder. She hopes his mistresses can hear him now. And when he pulses inside her, she thinks, _you’re mine_.

**Author's Note:**

> Slowly moving my work from Tumblr onto here


End file.
